Tír Na Nóg
by Allanna Stone
Summary: After the death of her mother, young Catelynn goes to live with her father, Templar Shay Comrac. This is the story of how Shay embraces fatherhood.
1. Chapter 1

**Tír Na Nóg**

 **I do not own Assassin's Creed.**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **After the death of her mother, young Catelynn goes to live with her father, Templar Shay Comrac. This is the story of how Shay embraces fatherhood.**

The carriage pulled to a stop outside of Fort Arsenal, its wheels squeaking softly as the horses neighed softly. A few seconds later, the carriage door opened for a portly man with a kind smile and twinkling eyes to step down. He was dressed more for comfort in patched trousers and a shirt that had seen a few too many washings.

The front door to the impressive mansion opened just as the portly man reached inside the carriage to pull something out. Another man exited the large house and began to hurry forwards, not quite running, nor walking, but something in between that resembled a fast gait.

"Come 'ere, Catelynn," grunted the portly man, lifting out a young child, no older then two at the most. "Ah, g'day, sir!"

"Hello Abe," greeted the younger man in a light Irish burr, flashing a white, even smile at him. "How was your journey?"

"It was well 'nough." The man chortled as the girl, Catelynn, hugged a patched doll to her chest before throwing her arm around his neck in a hug.

"You must be Catelynn," Shay murmured as Abe set the little girl down. She promptly hid behind his legs in shyness, peeking out to stare at the man with the strange accent. The Assassin Hunter sucked his breath in through his mouth at how much she resembled his mother. She had a soft, round face with fair skin and enormous bright green eyes. Her curls were a deep ruby scarlet in color and had escaped its once neat braid, making her resemble a wild lion of sorts.

Abe gently pushed Catelynn out from behind his legs and whispered something into her ears, making her glance back at him, to which she only received an encouraging smile. She took a few tentatively steps forward before halting and refusing to come any closer to Shay.

"Hello, wee one," Shay said in a soft voice, not moving closer to her, despite his heart longing to scoop her up into his strong arms and never let her go.

Catelynn once more looked at Abe, looking for permisiion to speak to this stange man. Abe nodded, and she smiled shyly.

"'ello," she mumbled, dragging a toe on the dirt road.

Here, Shay was at a loss for words as he took in his daughter, memorizing every inch of her, committing her to heart.

Suddenly, Catelynn launched herself at him, nearly knocking him off balance. He grunted as she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his neck. Automatically, Shay wrapped his arms around her, cradling her small body to his chest as he smiled up at Abe with tears prickling at his eyes.

"Dada."

Shay's heart summer salted at her soft voice, and a choked sob escaped his throat as he gently rubbed small circled into her back with his thumb. He was barely aware of Abe saying goodbye and getting back into the carriage to go back to the farm where he lived with his own family.

At last, Shay stood with his daughter in his arms and made his way inside Fort Arsenal for the night. He smiled gently at Catelynn, who was halfway asleep in his arms as he went up the stairs to the second floor.

"You must be tired," he murmured gently, pausing in the doorway of her room, which had once been an unused guestroom. Now it had a child sized bed with railings, a dresser and a toy chest, but little else, as how Shay didn't want to overwhelm Catelynn on her first night with him.

"Dada," Catelynn repeated when he tried to set her down, tightening her grip around his shoulders. Shay chuckled and carried her over towards the window, which overlooked the shipyard.

"You see that ship?" He pointed towards his own personal vessel. "That's _The Morrigan_ , my own ship. If you sleep well, I'll take you on it tomorrow, how does that sound?"

Catelynn's eyes lit up and she snuggled deeper into her father's embrace.

"Can you sleep in your own bed?" he asked gently, chuckling as she let go of him long enough to be tucked into bed. She kicked off her shoes and set them next to her bed before crawlin g under the covers, finding the doll that Shay had thoughtfully purchased to help her settle in.

"Goodnight, Catelynn," he smiled as he blew out the lamp and left to retire himself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Tír Na Nóg**

 **I do not own Assassin's Creed.**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **After the death of her mother, young Catelynn goes to live with her father, Templar Shay Comrac. This is the story of how Shay embraces fatherhood.**

Shay awoke suddenly to the sound of crying. It only took him a second to gain his bearings and jump out of bed.

 _Catelynn_! Shay's mind yelped as he fumbled for one of his revolvers before bolting from his room. As he snuck down the hallway, thunder and lightning danced an intricate ballet, lighting up the hallway for him.

He arrived at the door to her room, open a crack, just how he left it. He quietly pushed open the door, and peeked in. seeing no one, he entered and what he saw broke his heart in two.

Catelynn had hid herself underneath the bed, dragging the blankets with her and making a fort of sorts. She was shivering and crying with her hands over her ears to block out the thundering.

Shay sighed as he placed the revolver onto the dresser before crossing the room to kneel in front of her. Catelynn crawled out from underneath the bed, jumping and screaming as another boom of thunder cracked through the night. In her fright, she clamped onto Shay's side, clearly refusing to let go.

Shay chuckled as he picked her up, rubbing soothing circles into her back and walked around the room, humming softly to try and sooth her.

"Sweep wit you?" she asked in a whimper, hiding her face in his neck as lightning lit up the room. "Pwease?"

"Of course," he smiled, kissing her soft hair as he left the room, making a mental note to grab the revolver in the morning.

Catelynn fell asleep before he had even made it halfway to his room, lulled to sleep by the comfort of her father's arms keeping her safe. A peaceful smile grew on Shay's face as he tucked her in next to him before pulling the blanket over himself. His heart soared when Catelynn snuggled in closer to him, seeking out his body warmth.

"I promise that I will always protect you, Catelynn," murmured Shay.


	3. Chapter 3

**Tír Na Nóg**

 **I do not own Assassin's Creed.**

 **SUMMARY:**

 **After the death of her mother, young Catelynn goes to live with her father, Templar Shay Comrac. This is the story of how Shay embraces fatherhood.**

The next morning, Shay woke up to find Catelynn on top of him, her face buried into his neck. He laid there in peace, enjoying having her with him as the sun rose over the sea and filled his bedroom with warm light.

At last, Catelynn's eyes fluttered open and she yawned, rolling off of her father to hide her head under a pillow. Shay chuckled as he rubbed her back soothingly, remembering that he did the same to her mother when she refused to get up most mornings.

"Catelynn, I need to get up," he gently told the little girl, only to have her latch onto his side and refuse to let go of him. "Catelynn, please!" But still, she refused to budge any.

And then, Shay got a brilliant idea.

He poked her stomach with his fingers, grinning triumphantly when she wriggled away from him, shaking with giggles. He quickly got up out of bed and replaced his body with a pillow, watching fondly as she settled down, snuggling into the pillow as she drifted off once more with her thumb tucked into her mouth.

"Good lass," he murmured as he bent down to plant a kiss onto her forehead before throwing on his clothes for the day and exiting the room. He had barely even made it halfway out into the hallway before he felt something attach to his leg and clamp on with an iron tight grip. He looked and to his amusement saw Catelynn, with the blanket from his bed wrapped around her. She sat on his foot, still sucking her thumb calming as she drifted in a half awake, half asleep state of mind.

Shay chuckled as he scooped his daughter into his arms and went downstairs to start a pot of tea for him and make breakfasts for his little one- ot, at least, attempt it.

In the end, he only managed to make toast and find a bowl of applesauce, which Catelynn happily gobbled up before falling asleep once more. The Templar chuckled as he picked her up and cradled his young daughter close to his chest.

"Time to get ready for the day, hmm?" he asked her, chuckling as he went up the stairs and entered her bedroom, his mind set on the simple mission of dressing his daughter for the day ahead of them.

A task that was easier said than done.

Shay could only find trousers and shirts for Catelynn, and so he let her dress herself. After she had finished tugging a shirt over her plump belly, she took off at a run, leaving Shay to scramble after her, cursing under his breath at her speed.

"Lass! Wait up, lass!" he called out, his heart jumping into his throat as she went out the backdoor and made a beeline for the water. He put on a sudden burst of speed and swooped her into his arms, where his daughter began to whimper and squirm, trying to free herself so that she could look at the water. "You like the water?" he crooned, turning so that she could get a better look at the blue waves.

Catelynn giggled and reached out with one hand to wave at the ocean, her face lit up with absolute joy.

"Blue wa'er!" she crowed happily, using her other hand to prop herself up further on her father's shoulder.

Shay chortled at her overjoyed enthusiasm as he carried her closer to the water. She squealed loudly with joy, wriggling to be placed down onto the sand. Shay complied, keeping a tight grip on her tiny hand as she ran for the water, plopping herself down onto the wat sand, where she began to happily wiggle her toes in the chilly water.

Shay chuckled once more as he sat back to watch her play.


End file.
